The recent death of a police dog prompted one St. Albans councilman to question how the dogs are used in the field at Tuesday night’s meeting.
Xanto, a 2-year-old German shepherd, was killed Jan. 4 near the St. Albans Mall when he was run over by a car. The dog, which was patrolling near the Kmart store, started chasing a rabbit, and ran onto U.S. 60.
Councilman Jerry Hicks said he was concerned the dog’s handler, Sgt. Mike Matthews, had taken the animal off its leash.
Mayor Richard Milam said it was customary to take the police dogs off their leash when conducting investigations.
“The dogs are trained to work off a leash,” Milam said. “I think what happened here was the dog got around the building and could not hear its commands.”
Hicks said he was concerned that a police dog off a leash who could not hear commands could present a danger to innocent people.
“In my opinion, that’s not a good thing,” Hicks said. “I’m afraid that dog could attack somebody.”
Councilman Mac Gray said the dog chasing a rabbit was a unique occurrence and that the public has nothing to fear from police dogs.
“I’m not the least bit concerned about the dog and people,” he said. “I think it was the rabbit that got its attention.”
Milam said the city is receiving donations to pay for a replacement animal. He estimated a new dog costs $8,000.
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